Background
Uttarakhand Anti Littering and Anti Spitting Act, 2016 (Uttarakhand Act No. 23 of 2016) (“the Act”) is a State legislation enacted by the Uttarakhand Legislature to regulate and prevent littering, dumping, spitting, and other acts of environmental nuisance in public places within the jurisdiction of Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) — being Municipal Corporations, Municipal Councils, and Nagar Panchayats — in the State of Uttarakhand. The Act prohibits a comprehensive range of littering acts in public places, including the depositing of garbage and refuse, the spilling of noxious liquids, the dropping of waste from vehicles, the throwing of food containers and wrappers, and the agitation of lime, ashes, or feathers into the wind. It also prohibits spitting in public places, the abandonment of vehicles and scrap metal in public places, and the depositing of construction or demolition material in public places without prior permission. The Act places affirmative obligations on owners and occupiers of premises to maintain the cleanliness of the immediate vicinity of their premises, footpaths, and backyards. It confers powers on the Urban Local Body and Authorised Officers to issue directions for removal, to recover the costs of removal as arrears of land revenue, and to compound offences for amounts up to ₹500 or by requiring community service. The Act was amended by Uttarakhand Act No. 15 of 2022 (notified on 23rd December 2022), which substituted the penalty provisions under Sections 9(1) and 9(2) — replacing the original specified fine amounts with a formula under which the fine is determined by the State Government by notification from time to time.
Applicability
Act applies to all persons within the jurisdiction of Urban Local Bodies in Uttarakhand, including individuals, households, shop owners, commercial establishments, vehicle owners and drivers, contractors, builders and developers, and scrap dealers. Every person is subject to the absolute prohibitions on littering (Sections 4(a) to 4(f)), spitting (Section 4(i)), and the depositing of abandoned objects or scrap metal in public places (Section 4(h)). Vehicle owners and drivers are jointly and severally presumed liable for any littering from or through a vehicle (Section 6). Building owners and occupiers are presumed liable for littering from their building or premises (Section 7). Builders, contractors, and developers who carry out construction, alteration, or demolition activities in ULB areas must obtain prior permission before placing construction materials in a public place (Section 4(g)). All owners and occupiers of premises within ULB jurisdiction must keep the immediate vicinity, footpaths, and backyards abutting their premises clean at all times, and — where applicable — must maintain the portion of the adjoining private street up to the centre of such street (Sections 8(1) and 8(2)). Any person who receives a direction from the ULB or Authorised Officer must comply with it within the specified time, failing which removal costs are recoverable as arrears of land revenue (Section 5).
Compliance Requirement Under the act in Accordance with the Rules & Regulations:
No person shall commit any of the following acts in any public place within the jurisdiction of an Urban Local Body (Municipal Corporation, Municipal Council, or Nagar Panchayat) in Uttarakhand: (a) place, deposit, or throw litter; (b) dry, sun, or desecrate any food, article, or thing; (c) spill blood, brine, or any noxious or offensive liquid; (d) drop, scatter, or throw dirt, refuse, or garbage from a vehicle or by any other means; (e) agitate lime, ashes, or feathers into the wind; or (f) throw or leave any bottle, glass vessel, food container, or food wrapper. Under Section 6 of the Act, where littering is caused from or through a vehicle, the owner and the driver of the vehicle are jointly and severally presumed to have committed the offence. Under Section 7, where littering occurs from a building or premises, the person who is the owner or occupier of the building is presumed to have committed the offence.
No person shall deposit any stone, cement, earth, sand, wood, or other building or construction material in any public place in connection with the construction, alteration, or demolition of any building, without first obtaining prior permission from the Urban Local Body or the Authorised Officer. In addition, persons carrying out construction, alteration, or demolition must take all reasonable precautions and care to prevent any such material from spilling or extending into public places beyond the area permitted. The authority from whom permission must be obtained and the form and procedure for doing so should be verified with the concerned Urban Local Body, as rules under the Act may not yet have been formally notified.
No person shall place or deposit — or cause or allow to be placed or deposited — any abandoned vehicle, water tank, cement mixer, abandoned object, or scrap metal in any public place within the jurisdiction of an Urban Local Body in Uttarakhand. This prohibition applies to all persons, including vehicle owners, scrap dealers, contractors, and any other person who may leave or permit the leaving of such objects in public spaces.
‘Spitting’ under the Act means the voluntary ejection of saliva from the mouth — whether the person is chewing any substance or not — or the ejection of mucus from the nose. No person shall spit in any public place within the jurisdiction of an Urban Local Body in Uttarakhand. ‘Public place’ for the purpose of this prohibition includes any road, street, highway, bridge, park, garden, theatre, market, or any other place to which the public has access, whether by right or by permission.
Where the Urban Local Body or the Authorised Officer issues a direction to any person to remove litter, an abandoned vehicle, an abandoned object, or scrap metal from a public place, the person must comply with the direction and remove the material to a proper place within the time specified in the direction. Where the person fails to comply within the specified time, the Urban Local Body shall cause the removal to be carried out and shall recover the expenses incurred in doing so from the person, together with a surcharge of up to ten percent of such expenses, as arrears of land revenue. Recovery of removal expenses is in addition to — and does not relieve the person of — any liability for the underlying offence.
Every owner or occupier of premises within the jurisdiction of an Urban Local Body in Uttarakhand must: (a) keep the immediate vicinity of the premises — including footpaths and backyards abutting the premises — swept and clean at all times; and (b) where the premises abut a private street, keep the portion of the private street in front of or adjacent to the premises clean, up to the centre of the street. These obligations are continuous and apply at all times regardless of whether the premises are occupied or being used.
Where an Authorised Officer issues a written compounding offer to a person for an offence under the Act before the institution of prosecution, the person must either: (a) pay the compounding amount — not exceeding ₹500 — to the Urban Local Body or the Authorised Officer within the time specified in the compounding offer; or (b) enrol for Community Service, which may include activities such as cleaning, sweeping, or graffiti removal as notified by the Urban Local Body, in lieu of payment of the compounding amount. Payment of the compounding amount or enrolment and completion of the community service within the specified period extinguishes all liability for prosecution in respect of the compounded offence. Failure to pay or enrol within the specified time may result in prosecution for the underlying offence. The compounding offer form and community service details are prescribed under rules framed under the Act, which should be verified with the concerned Urban Local Body or the Urban Development Department, Government of Uttarakhand.
Penalty & Consequences
Section 9(1) of the Uttarakhand Anti Littering and Anti Spitting Act, 2016 (as substituted by Uttarakhand Act No. 15 of 2022) — Fine for Contravention
Any person who contravenes any provision of the Act shall, on conviction, be punishable with such fine as may be determined by the State Government from time to time by notification. The specific fine quantum is not prescribed on the face of the Act following the substitution by the 2022 Amendment; regulated entities must verify the current notified fine amount with the Urban Development Department, Government of Uttarakhand, or the relevant Urban Local Body.
Section 9(2) of the Uttarakhand Anti Littering and Anti Spitting Act, 2016 (as substituted by Uttarakhand Act No. 15 of 2022) — Additional Fine for Continuing Offence
In the case of a continuing offence — where the contravention persists after the first conviction — an additional fine as determined by the State Government from time to time shall also be imposed for every day during which the contravention continues. This additional fine quantum is similarly subject to State Government notification.
Section 9(3) of the Uttarakhand Anti Littering and Anti Spitting Act, 2016 — Recovery of Removal Expenses
Where the Urban Local Body executes the removal of litter, abandoned vehicles, abandoned objects, or scrap metal from a public place on the failure of a person to comply with a direction under Section 5, all expenses incurred by the Urban Local Body in effecting such removal — together with a surcharge of up to ten percent of such expenses — are recoverable from the person as arrears of land revenue. This recovery is independent of and in addition to any conviction and fine under Section 9(1).
Section 10 of the Uttarakhand Anti Littering and Anti Spitting Act, 2016 — Compounding and Community Service
An Authorised Officer may compound any offence under the Act — before institution of prosecution — by requiring the offender to pay a compounding amount not exceeding ₹500, or to enrol for and complete Community Service (such as cleaning, sweeping, or graffiti removal as notified by the Urban Local Body) in lieu of such payment. Payment of the compounding amount or completion of community service within the specified time extinguishes the offence. Failure to pay or enrol within the specified time results in prosecution for the underlying offence, which carries the fine under Section 9(1).
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